[Cinnamon]

Hi Y' all! I have a 1996 Z 275 SHABAH equipped with a MERCRUISER 7.4 liter BRAVO III SPORT 300 HP Inboard and the skeg has taken a beating over the years so there are missing chunks.

I have been told there are various ways to repair it. One of which being; cutting off the broken skeg and having a new skeg blank welded in it's place. Also, in searching the web just now, I've come across something called a "SKEGGARD" which, if I'm not mistaken in my understanding (and I very well may be! LOL), says you can cover your old broken skeg with one of these to repair it, and/or, the part will also keep a new skeg from being destroyed.

Mind you, I'm your typical female and do not know much about this matter but I had an "ah huh moment" and thot to myself, "self, you are a member of the Mariah Owners Club and need to ask your fellow club members for their valuable input." So here I am! ::smiling:: I thank you all kindly and will be eagerly awaiting your responses!

"Cin-cerely,"
Cinnamon

P.S. Plz recommend a competitive supplier for any required parts and have a marvelous day!

[karmann]

Hello
I have a 95 27 ' barchetta, my skeg was damaged when I purchased, it and then I added some additional damage. I just purchased the (skeggard ).
It's a very simple install, ( 2- 1/4" holes drilled) . It also looks & performs great.
good luck.

[Captain Steve]

I also have a SKEGGARD on my Alpha One. It does look good and only needed two holes drilled. A tube of super-duper Loc-Tite comes with it to keep the mounting bolts screwed together. Because it covers the whole skeg I think it looks much better than the SkegPro. At about a Franklin it's a little pricey for what you get though IMHO.

[WetWilly]

Hi Cinnamon,

Our bravo III was missing most of the skeg as well so I was in the same situation. I thought about covering the skeg but after doing a little research, I decided to go with repairing it. Click here for the reasons for not going with a skeg cover and click here for my thread on our skeg repair.

If your skeg is really bad you can have one fabricated like I did or you can purchase a replacement one and have it wielded on. Here's one on eBay at really good price. Click here.

Good luck,
WetWilly

[ShabahZ250]

I had mine welded earlier this year, looks brand new, and was fairly cheap!

[SEMIJim]

Originally Posted by ShabahZ250

I had mine welded earlier this year, looks brand new, and was fairly cheap!

Was that a whole new Mercruiser replacement skeg you had welded on? Please define "fairly cheap."

Thanks,
Jim

[ShabahZ250]

It was part of a big repair I had done. The shop sent my outdrive and prop out to a local prop shop. I'm not sure if they used a brand new Mercruiser Skeg, but it looks brand new, you can't even tell at all! I believe it was less than $200 to get the skeg done, and around $120 to get the prop balanced using the Hale MRI system.

[SEMIJim]

Originally Posted by ShabahZ250

I believe it was less than $200 to get the skeg done,

Wow! Quotes I've received so far have been $450 (and that's if there's at least 1" of the current skeg left to weld to) to $900 (cutting what's left of the old skeg off and welding a whole new one on).

Last place I talked to (the one that quoted $450) said it would be far better just to replace the entire lower unit (gear housing), as there's no telling what other damage that might've been incurred that's not immediately visible. He quoted slightly under $1k for that.

Originally Posted by ShabahZ250

and around $120 to get the prop balanced using the Hale MRI system.

Which reminds me: I need to call and make sure they give me an estimate for the prop repair if it's going to exceed the $50-$75 the WM guy informally "quoted" me.

Expen$ive damn way to "discover" that sunken barge full of rocks

Jim